Culture of Third Earth
by Balin Lord of Moria
Summary: A story about the different races, nations and cultures of Third Earth (Cats, Birds, Elephants, Dogs, Berbils, Fish, Rats, Lizards, Monkeys, and Jackals, and possibly others). Partly inspired by BrightBlueHearse's story, "Written Map of Third Earth." I don't own ThunderCats; WB does.
1. The Cats

**Culture of Third Earth**

 **A/N:** This is a story of the varied cultures of Third Earth expanded upon. In a way, it also expands upon the story Written Map of Third Earth, which writer BrightBlueHearse has given permission to use or add to in any fan works or role-plays. It will be divided into chapters for each known race and nation/city/village on or above Third Earth that has been spoken of in the canon.

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own _ThunderCats 2011_ ; it truly belongs to WB.

* * *

 **The Cats**

*The Cats/ThunderCats of the Kingdom of Thundera live in a mostly fertile land with plenty of good soil for farmers to grow crops and sustain food in marketplaces for people to buy with gold and silver coins.

*Cat's Lair is the capital city of Thundera, and the dwelling place for the rulers of Thundera, like King Claudus and Lion-O.

*The Cats depend primarily on magic to live their lives, but sometimes have to use technology when in great need, such as when Thundera fell. The mysterious Book of Omens is said to be neither magic nor technology, but a mix of them both.

*They enjoy hearty and delicious meat and vegetables, and sometimes fruits, for their cuisine, making it into the most delectable of Cat dishes, like fruit salad, mutton, beef, poultry, and vegetable soups.

*Cats enjoy playing games and music, making the kind of music one might hear in a national anthem, or just simple instruments, like a variety of pipes, fifes, harmonicas, etc., hence WilyKit's flupe. Games are cute and inventive, particularly amongst their cubs and kittens, though they don't involve technological games or toys, due to the majority of Animal races fearing and shunning technology due to Mumm-Ra's bad influence on it. The royal games, like racing up a series of curved growths to ring a bell at the top, are also played on special occasions, to be dedicated to legendary heroes amongst the Cats.

*There is a hierarchy among Cats. Lions are considered royalty. Jaguars, Panthers, Cheetahs, Pumas, Ocelots, Lynxes, etc. were seen as lower ranking Cats, and the attention lavished on them ranges from moderate to almost none, particularly if they work as street merchants or live in the slums.

*The Tiger Clan was once banished to a far away mountain range for refusing to break their ties of loyalty to Mumm-Ra, and the only known exception to this is when Claudus adopted Tygra as an extra son.

*Architecture and building strategies are far superior to most other cultures on Third Earth. The Cat's Lair is a very ornate building accurately shaped like a Cat, the Tower of Omens is also very elaborate, and the (high and middle class) homes and businesses of Thundera are constructed with fine attention to detail that could do justice to the finest cabinet-maker.

*The Cat race is about 50/50 on the pragmatic/spiritual scale.

*Although they do not use much technology, the Cats' Thunderian Royal Army is one of the strongest armies on Third Earth, having metal armor and sharp, metal weapons to match the more primitive ones so many of the other Animal races usually wield, until the Lizards came with Mumm-Ra's technology to destroy Thundera.

*Cat clothing is a cross between armor and rough cloth, with the male ThunderCats and the Royal Army usually wearing armor, and the female and lower ranking Cats usually wearing cloth and leather clothing.

*Cats value their own kind, but until the coming of Lion-O, and his ancestor Leo, they have had a tendency to look down on other races, considering them weak and uncultured, and the Cats would take whatever they wanted, using the Eye of Thundera to pit nations against each other to weaken them further and consolidate their own rule.

*The Cats' number one source of strength and power comes from the War Stone, a Power Stone originally intended for Mumm-Ra's Sword of Plun-Darr, but stolen by Leo and installed within the Sword of Omens, becoming the mighty Eye of Thundera. It is through this Stone that the Cats, especially the ThunderCats, gain the strength to be superior in every battle against evil when wielded by a nobleman such as Lion-O or Leo.

*For reasons unknown, the Cats bear a stronger resemblance to humans than any other Animal race on Third Earth, with very human features on their faces, except for their pointed ears, the right number of fingers and toes, and an upright posture and height usually befitting a human.

*As is probably evident, Thundera is a monarchy, with a king and queen ruling the kingdom with a firm, proud, but steady hand.

*Cats are not entirely above using technology, as shown when the exiled ThunderCats use machines such as the ThunderTank, Hover Boards, and the airship, the Feliner.

*Not as much is known about the mountain range where the Tigers are exiled, but it's believed by the few who go there and return that the Tigers live alongside wolf packs, fox packs, bears, snow leopards, and various other natural, non-sentient hazards.


	2. The Birds

**Culture of Third Earth**

 **The Birds**

 _All Birdmen_

*The Birds of Third Earth live in electoral governments. Both the Bird Nation and Avista are part democracy, and part meritocracy.

*Birds have seen the good side of technology, and with the help of the Tech Stone, another Power Stone, they have achieved a lifestyle where tech provides for their every practical need, especially in Avista, where the technology is more advanced. This is in sharp contrast to the Lizard army, who use their technology as destructive weapons for Mumm-Ra's cause.

*The Birds are also the most culturally and artistically advanced race on Third Earth, more so than even the Cats. They wear refined and well-tailored clothing that almost always fits them like a glove, though some wear more of it than others (the Birds of Prey, who usually served as high-ranking politicians, usually wore less clothes, male and female alike, as did some other Birds). Vultaire only wore a purple kilt-like skirt, a medallion, and four gold bands on his arms. His aide, Horus, on the other hand, always dressed in a long, green robe.

*The Birds have a wide variety of sub-species, such as Birds of Prey, Crows, Ravens, Pigeons, Parrots, Geese, Magpies, Storks, Ducks, Pelicans, Macaws, Cockatoos, Mockingbirds, Catbirds, Doves, Cranes, Swans, Warblers, Sparrows, Woodpeckers, Swallows, and many more.

*The Birdmen have a tendency to be arrogant towards non-Birds from the ground, thinking that they are unsophisticated and primitive savages with no sense of style or manners. Nonetheless, they live by a set of principles, and one of those principles is to treat visitors with generous hospitality, no matter how little they may think of them.

*Bird cuisine is unique and elaborately prepared, and their chefs make fine and delicious (to Birdmen) dishes, such as millet seed casserole, larvae of bark crawler, beetles-on-the-half-shell, and crispy fried mealworms, as well as a variety of main courses, like carrion cordon bleu, antelope sliders, and grass pizza pie.

*Birdmen, like real birds, place high value on family, with their Birdwomen caring for the young passionately while the Birdmen defend their young from troublemakers. They believe in unconditional love between parent and child.

*All Birdmen, again like real birds, court their Birdwomen with their brightly colored feathers.

*Birds have technological entertainment, like digital books and television. They value reality TV very highly, not just as entertainment, but as a crucial part of their culture. Competitive reality TV judges who deserves the most merit to the vital ways of the lives of Birds, and who is destined to be greatest or least in every aspect of a Bird's life. Non-competitive reality TV is either interactively educational or show the Birds how to fulfill their destinies. A few examples of Bird reality TV are:

 ***Legacy  
** ***The Winged Migration Race  
** ***The Call  
** ***Avista's Next Top Model  
** ***Avistan Idol  
** ***Avista's Got Talent  
** ***Chick Nation  
** ***The Hen  
** ***The Cock  
** ***Full Family  
** ***Sky Chef  
** ***Bird House Hunters** **  
**

*Long story short, the Birds as a whole live a very western lifestyle, unlike most of the other races on Third Earth.

 _The Bird Nation_

*The Birds of the Bird Nation, while wholly sapient, live and behave more like actual birds than humans. They have less (but not no) technology than Avista City, although they shared books and television with Avista.

*High-ranking Birds always wear a green vest or skirt that is refined and well tailored, just like the rest of a Bird's clothes.

*The Bird Nation has a well-established legal system, and when a criminal is judged to be too dangerous to be imprisoned or let go, they are dropped from a high altitude to the ground and executed. The Birds usually generously allow the criminal to have a last meal first, however, although there were exceptions when the criminal was a savage barbarian who ate sentient life, such as Addicus the Monkey.

*The Bird Nation is in the treetops high above the ground, and uses less technology than Avista, so its homes were simply-furnished "bird houses," nests, tree holes for Woodpeckers, and mass colonies for Birds like Swallows.

*There are a larger number of spiritual Birds than pragmatists in the Bird Nation.

*They value education, knowledge, and social status in the Bird Nation, just like in Avista, and different families and species of Birds usually have specialized jobs and careers, like Ravenmen as military, Kitemen as police, Raptors as rulers, Pigeons and Doves as advisors, and small Birds like Warblerfolk and Sparrowmen as laypeople.

*The Bird Nation values community and nature above all else, next to reality TV, and they love their chicks dearly.

*Bird songs and calls are used territorially and to warn and alert other Birds as well as for entertainment.

*They do everything, body care, sleep, eat, display feather patterns, and store food, like actual birds.

 _Avista_

*Due to their greatly advanced culture, the Birds of Avista, while entirely bird-like in appearance, act more like humans than birds.

*The bulk of reality culture is practiced here in Avista, since they have more technology, more resources, and for the most part, more locations to film in.

*Avista is powered by the Tech Stone, which improves their technology and makes it perfect so that it cannot break down unless the Stone is removed from the power core. It also generates anti-gravity emissions, which keep the city afloat, which means it will drop to the ground very fast if the Stone is taken.

*One could say that the Avistan Birds don't just "use technology; they _live_ technology." – (Godfrey Reggio)

*Avista is highly democratic, and believes in hearing the voice of all the city's inhabitants when it comes to social, religious, and political matters. But it's also meritocratic, meaning that the Birds believe that education, experience, sport, and reality competition determines which Birds are most fit for all kinds of roles in the city's everyday life.

*In addition to a prefect who runs the city as a whole, Avista City is governed by wealthy and intellectual elected aristocrats.

*Avista is also governed by COMPALOR, the Commission for the Perseverance of Avistan Law and Order, which promotes and supports the high status of the Birds as a species and seeks to uphold their values till the end of Avista. It was they who wrote the **Avista's Creed** , and chose the city's official mottos, **"In Tech We Trust,"** and **"Potens Volucres."**

*The FLGroup is a youth organization dedicated to upholding and supporting the ideology of Avista and the Birdmen. It has divisions for a headquarters, education, recreation, motivation, and refinement.

* **Avezone** is the official sport of Avista, which involves two teams of Birds gliding in an invisibly fenced-off area in the air, trying to land goals in a deep basket while flying without flapping their wings. Some Birds are accepted into certain academies for their high Avezone scores.

*The Avistan seal consists of a Raven looking to its left, a banner with "potens volucres" written on it in its claws, and a scrap of bread in its beak.

*The **Raven** is the official Bird of Avista, due to its high intelligence and dangerous courage.

*The official dishes of Avista are **rodentia tartare** , **carrion cordon bleu** , and **avesburgers**. **Fried mealworms** and **millet seed casserole** are the official side dishes, and **Avistan red wine** and **Koda-Cola** are the official drinks.

*Though Avista has some spiritual citizens, the city is, by a rule, more pragmatic than the Bird Nation.

*Being more human-like than the Bird Nation Birds, the Avistans value art, literature, films, sports, and computers, including computer games. They also eat a little more human-like than bird-like, in spite of their beaks.

*Because of their affinity for technology, they also fly around in airships, SkyCutters (air force jets for the Kitemen and Ravenmen), and other flying machines, such as the prefect's personal flying machine. The Avistan Birds still do fly under their own wing power, too, when it suits them.

*Avista is probably the closest to a modern western society on the whole of Third Earth.


	3. The Dogs

**Culture of Third Earth**

 **The Dogs**

*The Dogs primarily live in the desert near Mount Plun-Darr, in a large establishment called the City of Dogs, or Dog City, made mostly of stone and dried mudbrick, with buildings supplemented and augmented by various forms of aging technology and scrap metal.

*The city's main focus is on the Pit, a huge gladiatorial arena in the middle of the city, where slaves and criminals fight in all-out battles to survive, and to win.

*A prisoner in the Pit has to fight until he/she has won one hundred fights and earned his/her freedom, or is dead.

*The Dog City has no centralized government, although it does have some authorities who keep the law in the city and take care of troublemakers and thieves, including Dog Constables.

*Some Dogs live in the slums of Thundera, but they are not treated very well by the Cats who are the main inhabitants, similar to the way "low-life" Cats and tailed Cats are treated there.

*Dogs usually use melee weapons in combat, like swords, spears, and shields, and are mostly adverse to technology, though there are a few exceptions, such as an individual named Jorma who keeps a junk/hardware shop outside Dog City and loves to tinker with tech.

*Dog breeds vary amongst the ranks. Jackals were once considered royalty amongst Dogs, but have mostly disappeared from the scene mysteriously. Many remaining Dogs are like Mutts, while others are like Wolves, Foxes, Coyotes, Doberman Pinschers, Pitbulls, Labrador Retrievers, Mastiffs, Dingoes, Bulldogs, Sheepdogs, Spaniels, Beagles, and many more kinds, even some toy Dog breeds, like Chihuahuas, Yorkshire Terriers, and Pugs.

*Dogs have a partial hierarchy. As already stated, Jackals were once considered royalty, though that rank seems to have fallen to the Dobermans in recent decades. Bulldogs usually serve as guards, especially in Dog City's prison. Boxers and German Shepherds are known to be Constables. Smaller Dogs, like Beagles and the toys, are often laypeople.

*Besides the Pit, Dog City consists of a relatively normal society, filled with bazaars, bars, dime stores, grocery stores, bookstalls, butcher shops, liquor stores, a tobacconist, and even the Doggie Day Spa.

*Some Dogs deal in illicit activities at the City's two "head shops," or illegal drug shops, one of which sells caffeine, something addicting, but very harmful, to Dogs, but they use it anyway, because it makes them "get high."

*Rotty's Fighting Guild is an organization where the fighting Dogs go to train to be the best of the best. Dobo, former criminal and now owner of the Pit, once trained here to be one of the best Dog warriors of his time.

*The Chamber of Scars is a museum, which displays the gladiatorial feats of every valiant Dog prisoner who's ever fought to victory, or to the death, in the Pit or on the battlefield.

*Hunters and farmers provide most of the food that the Dogs consume. Dogs eat mostly meat, though some will occasionally eat certain plants that they can chew on more easily, and adult Dogs usually drink wine or beer (or another form of alcohol), while the Puppies usually drink grape juice or water.

*Gambling is one of several semi-illicit ways the City of Dogs maintains its fragile economy. Both the Pit and a place called Draw Lots each have a grubby but well-ordered casino where the Dogs play games to survive, and individual and group gambling is encouraged in the stands of the Pit, as well.

*Dog culture values loyalty and bravery to be higher than any other perceived virtues, and the Dogs are willing to be partners with brave fighters who return their loyalty passionately. They are not so fond of those who break their words, or who are cowardly, and will not fight beside such people, nor be lenient to them if they are thrown into the Pit.

*It's believed that Dog ferocity in battle is near equal with that of the Cats, even though the Dogs' military is not as strong as that of the Cats, or of Mumm-Ra's Lizard army, either.

*Arms and armor are made in the bowels of the Pit, but the City also has an armory that provides arms and armor for those warriors who are not subject to the Pit.

*For those Dogs who prefer a slightly more "friendly" version of fighting, there's the Dog Wrestling Federation (DWF) next door to the Pit. Some of the more peaceful Dogs go here for their entertainment. Other Dogs who don't care for battle at all like to go to the local theater to be amused.

*The clothing of Dogs ranges from simple but handsome cloth and leather for the laypeople, to tough and durable armor for the warriors. Dog armor isn't as artistic as Cat armor, or the refined clothes of Birdmen, for that matter, but it's sufficient for its primary purpose, to protect its wearer from harm.

*Dog society is not entirely battle loving, and they will live normal lives like those of common people, especially if they're among the smaller and weaker Dogs, like the toys and other cute Dogs.

*Dogs are normally pragmatic and materialistic, though some here and there believe in something more.

*Even sport is practiced in some parts of Dog territory. Some middle-class and lower-class Dogs play sports games like Agility, Disc Dog, and Dock Jumping, if they are willing to get down on all fours and act like real dogs, that is. Dog society isn't meritocratic, but Dog sportsmen still compete to be the best, like any other sportsmen would, in good, clean fun.


	4. The Lizards

**Culture of Third Earth**

 **The Lizards**

*The Lizard species lives in marshlands in the eastern section of the swamplands next door to the kingdom of Thundera.

*Neighbors of the Lizardfolk include some amphibianfolk, like Frogmen, Toadmen, and Salamandermen, as well as a few handfuls of native Fishmen who fish in the cleaner and healthier parts of the swamp water.

*Lizard homes are usually ramshackle houses, like one might find in a third world country, and they don't have the best resources by which to keep their homes sanitary.

*Lizards are also scavengers, frequently looking for the scraps left behind by other Animals, particularly their bitter enemies, the Cats. Some of the more unhappy Lizards fight each other for the healthiest and tastiest bits of discarded food.

*The Lizards have difficulty getting along with other races, too, even though they have some grudging sympathy for the plight of the other Animals which the Cats look down on. However, they do have a bond, and even a certain camaraderie, with the amphibians, as well as their Fishmen neighbors, whom they see as their only friends in a world full of hostilities.

*Lizards believe that nature gave them, and only them, all the sweet fruits of Third Earth, and though they eat plenty of meat, Lizard hunters apologize humbly to their non-sapient prey, showing a feeling of respect to the beasts they kill.

*Since longer than they can remember, Lizards have held traditions such as the conviction that their kind is to be ruled by a god-like being greater than themselves, and many of them have spent many fruitless centuries searching for the ideal leader for their people.

*The singing voices of the Lizards sound hoarse to other races and species, but the Lizards don't care; they sing songs of praise and harmony to the unidentified maker of the universe as they make marches through the wilderness to find new homes after they might lose their old ones. The Lizards have no grudge against nature, and when they lose their homes, they are temporarily nomads.

*The majority of Lizards, as well as their amphibian neighbors, don't like technology, and can't understand how Lizards who want revenge on the Cats could possibly sacrifice their principles just to have an advantage over the arrogant felines of Thundera.

*The Lizards' water supply at the swamps is tainted by sewage waste dumped from Thundera's sewer system, making water harmful to drink, and risky to swim in.

*For this reason, the Lizards and their neighbors reluctantly use water treatment technology to make their home at least semi-habitable.

*A sizable faction of Lizards, led by a cold-blooded beast named Slithe, have allied themselves with the revived Mumm-Ra the Ever-Living, to get revenge on the Cats for their long persecution of Lizardkind. In exchange, Mumm-Ra has offered them military technology, the likes of which no other race except the Birds have seen for many a century.

*Peaceful Lizards can't understand how Slithe could have made some of their own kind work for such a monster as Mumm-Ra, and refuse to join his empire. They also refuse to accept Mumm-Ra as their "god figure," saying that the Lizards are meant to be led by someone benevolent.

*Lizards often have to resort to theft in order to feed themselves and their families, because only the Cats and the Birds control the best lands and resources, while the other Animals usually have to fight over scraps. Because of their oppressed lifestyle, Lizards don't always consider it a crime to steal, if it's done to preserve the lives of their loved ones.

*Lizards are believers in self-preservation.

*Lizard society isn't entirely oppressive and dirty, and they do enjoy playing games with each other, especially their children. Dig dug, eat the meat, and water spit are some of their favorites. And although they don't use currency, they generously trade goods and resources with each other, as well.

*Dancing is a tradition among Lizards, too, and they have several kinds which are their means of asking the universe to reveal to them their maker. The "maker" hasn't revealed him/herself to date, but the Lizards keep dancing, anyway.

*Lizards are convinced that one day, an apocalypse of sorts will take place, resulting in a new age where they will finally be in a high position among the Animals and rule like a race of kings.

*Many Lizards believe that in this new age, the Lizards will rule side-by-side with other Animal species, while Mumm-Ra's Lizards believe that Lizardkind will reign supreme over everyone else, especially the Cats.


	5. The Monkeys

**Culture of Third Earth**

 **The Monkeys**

*The Monkeys (or Monkians) and their Ape cousins do not have their own territories. They are attached to the Bird Nation's territory as serfs to work their agriculture for them.

*Technically, they are not slaves per se, but many see their servitude to the Birds as slavery.

*Monkeys' masters are usually wealthy aristocrats (or other high ranking Birdfolk in the Bird Nation), and the Monkians and Apes live in shabby conditions on their lords' or ladies' properties. Each Monkey and Ape is treated with courtesy by the Birds, but the avians still see themselves as being above the Monkeys in almost every way, especially culture and refinement.

*Monkeys dress in rough, homespun clothes which are usually dark in color, though some Apes are skilled enough (and have the right kind of masters) to make slightly better looking clothes with more color.

*These creatures are strong and willful, and have enough brains to be very clever and cunning, but they lack the genius and subtlety of their Bird neighbors. They can even make their own tools and "tech" with the scraps of Bird machines and from nature through imaginative improvisation.

*The Monkian-kind's relationship with the Birds of the Bird Nation is similar to the Lizards' relations with the Cats. They consider the "bird brains" to be their worst enemy, always making them do what they wanted, taking and not giving back, and exploiting them and their families in embarrassing ways.

*Unfortunately, the Monkeys are ignorant of the existence of the Birds of Avista, who are equally arrogant but don't believe in slavery or exploitation, thus being slightly more virtuous than the Birds of the Bird Nation.

*Monkeys are generally hostile Animals, because their experiences with the Birds have led them not to trust anybody other than their own kind. However, if a stranger saves the life of a Monkey/Ape, or otherwise does the Monkian a big practical favor, he/she will pledge their life to serving their savior with a life debt.

*Some Monkians have severed their ties with the Birds (both literally and figuratively), and hide out in another part of the jungle as an activist group which stages guerilla protests (pun intended) on Bird businesses and homes to protest their shabby treatment and encourage civil freedoms for their kind.

*A Monkey's mother and father work together to raise their babies, and will fiercely protect them from any creature, including their Bird masters, who seeks to harm or exploit them before they hit their coming-of-age.

*Apes are a different race from the Monkeys, although they're very closely related, and take great offense if someone fails to tell them apart. They can be told apart by Monkeys having a tail, while Apes don't.

*Monkians come in numerous types, like chimpanzees, gorillas, orangutans, gibbons, capuchins, spiders, howlers, baboons, colobus, macaques, and many more.

*Monkeys and Apes usually eat fruits, nuts, and vegetation, but some, like chimps and baboons, are also hunters and like eating meat, too. The Birds let them go search for their own food at meal times, but keep surveillance over the jungle to make sure as few as possible escape captivity.

*Monkeys and Apes can read books, and find many subjects fascinating, though technology isn't one of them. The Birds usually pick out the books for them, much to their chagrin, but the Monkeys are usually satisfied.

*Monkeys and Apes are also excellent singers, who sing sad songs at their plight with the Birds in front of them, though the Birds usually ignore them. The guerilla protest groups usually sing songs of their own to bolster their morale, such as "We Shall Overrun" and "Monkian Power."

*Apes and Monkeys who don't have to work constantly, as well as their children, enjoy their own games, like "Name That Picture," "Dunk the Ball," "Skip Up the Ladder," and "Monkeys vs. Birdies," a favorite among adults, which involves using a chess-like board and pieces to outsmart, outwit, and outlast the enemy. Most Monkeys prefer playing the Monkians, but many are willing to play the Birds sometimes for the sake of exercising the Monkeys and Apes' minds.

*Monkeys are so fit for physical labor, they exercise regularly to stay in shape, unless they're among some of the more peaceful, or lazier, gorillas and orangutans. Nonetheless, even the "lazy" ones are strong enough to easily snap a Bird's neck. That's why the Bird Nation's Birds usually carry a weapon on them for self-defense, and keep their Chicks a safe distance from the Simians.

*A criminal Monkey/Ape named Addicus once served the guerilla protest groups after escaping captivity, but his ways of protesting became too barbaric, even for the roughest and toughest of the other Monkeys, and they told him to go away and fight his battles on his own. They were especially perturbed one time when he bit off a young Monkian's shoulder and ate it, commenting that he never knew sapient flesh tasted so good. Later, after committing some crimes against the Bird Nation and almost being executed for it, Addicus served Mumm-Ra as a general for his Lizard army.

*While not exactly warlike, the Monkeys are predisposed toward violence after their long exploitation and persecution, and Mumm-Ra thinks this will make them perfect soldiers to supplement the Lizards in their fight against the ThunderCats.


	6. The Elephants

**Culture of Third Earth**

 **The Elephants**

*Most of the known Elephants of Third Earth reside together in a large (in proportion to body size) village on a large, lush mountain amongst several other smaller mountains, connected by krudzu-bamboo bridges to said mountains.

*The village consists largely of stone temples, stone and wood houses, a meditation circle for the elders, and a very small (to Elephants) hut which magically leads to the mysterious Astral Plane.

*Unlike most other Animal species, there are not a great many sub-species or races amongst the ranks of the Elephants. They include Indian, Asian, African, forest and bush, and that's it.

*The Elephants' neighbors include satyrfolk, panda folk, both giant and red, Chow Chow guards, and various other species which are usually peaceful. The giant pandamen have been drastically reduced in numbers by some of the war packs, like Jackals, wolves, coyotes, foxes, and other predators.

*The Elephants are the third, and only other, Animal race besides the Cats and the Birds that have prospered well in their country and stayed at the top of the food chain. This may be due to the fact that each of these three races protects a Power Stone, in the Elephants' case, the Spirit Stone, which they hid in the Astral Plane.

*While the Cats live by magic and mysticism and the Birds depend on technology, the Elephants are a very spiritual species, abiding by maintaining the peace and harmony of the universe through meditation and understanding.

*The Elephants grow their own crops, fruits and vegetables, and they keep it as safe as possible from the giant insects called the wraiths, which often steal some of their food. Nonetheless, they depend on the wraiths' existence to protect them from a barbaric stone giant that sleeps near both the village and the wraiths' hives.

*Although the Elephants aren't as interested in complicated education like the Cats and the Birds, they do have small schools in their village, the Bawdi Elementary School and the Gangani High School, where they teach their young about nature, harmony, living off the land, and quiet meditation, among other similar things that they find important.

*The village has no organized government, but if it did have one, some might see it as a quasi-theocracy, because of the Elephants' devotion to the fabric of the universe and the spirits which amend it.

*Elephants do some of the same things real elephants do, like drink, cool off and bathe in a tank (pond), graze on their food on feeding grounds, and relax from time to time under shade trees.

*Elephants always cremate their dead rather than bury them, because they believe that by honorably destroying the body, the spirit is freed to become one with the universe.

*Elephant calves, like most Animal children, love to play with each other, and enjoy such games as "Four Corners," "Passing the Parcel," "Lucky Ducky" and "Duck Duck Goose." To their sadness, the Birds of the Bird Nation and Avista consider the last two games to be obscene.

*Elephants are rarely possessive, and share their things with each other generously. To them, anyone with a conscience can see that nothing is permanent, so it can't belong to anyone indefinitely, and only the greedy would get their hands on more than they need.

*Partly because of their large, awkward hands, but mostly because of their adherence to vocal legends and traditions, Elephants don't read or write books, and are usually illiterate.

*They do, however, have the hands of a healer, and they can mend many different kinds of wounds one might receive, although a broken heart is not one of them.

*Elephant society has marketplaces for them to get their goods and supplies, but instead of using money to pay for them, they generously trade some of the extra goods they already own to the merchants in exchange for the ones they need.

*The village also has a dozen wells to help water their crops and provide drinking water when the tank is drying out, as well as barns for their working non-sapient animals, and a few playgrounds for their children, especially at the elementary school.

*Elephants are talented musicians, and can make anything from drum music with their feet to tuba-like music with their trunks.

*In spite of the old saying, "Elephants never forget," the sapient Elephants of Third Earth are not known for their good memories, sometimes forgetting things almost as soon as they hear them. But they never forget that there is a delicate balance to all things, and this is why they allow the wraiths to take some of their harvest so the stone giant won't wake up and destroy their village.

*Like their neighbors, Elephants are usually pacifists and don't like to fight. However, if they have to protect their village from hostile invaders, or they have a friend they wish to help in his/her own fight against a villain, they are willing to fight for as long as necessary.

*If Cat society is like medieval monarchies in Europe and Bird society is like a western technological milieu, Elephant society is like that of the Hindu philosophers of the Indian subcontinent. The Elephants even have Indian accents.


End file.
